Mobile Miscellany: week of November 19th, 2012

If you didn’t get enough mobile news during the week, not to worry, because we’ve opened the firehose for the truly hardcore. This past week, we discovered an abundance of special edition smartphones and T-Mobile gave ten new reasons for owners of unlocked iPhones to smile. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the “best of the rest” for this week of November 19th, 2012.

T-Mobile brings 1900MHz HSPA+ to ten new markets

As part of its effort to clear the way for LTE over the 1700MHz (AWS) spectrum, T-Mobile has successfully repurposed its 1900MHz spectrum for HSPA+ use in ten new markets. As a happy consequence, this also means that some of its subscribers — we’re looking at you, unlocked iPhone owners — can now use their devices at true 3G speeds. The new areas include: Phoenix, Mesa and Tucson, Ariz.; San Francisco, Modesto, Oakland, San Jose and Stockton, Calif.; Miami and Fort Lauderdale, Fla. T-Mobile’s latest effort follows announcements for Baltimore, Houston, Kansas City, Las Vegas and Washington D.C. With only 15 repurposed markets under its belt, there’s no doubt that T-Mobile still has a long road ahead in its march to LTE glory. [T-Mobile]

If you’ve yet to make friends with a Verizon Wireless employee, now might be a good time to turn on the charm — if you hope to score a limited edition smartphone, that is. The folks at Droid Life recently caught word that Big Red is offering custom versions of the Droid RAZR MAXX HD, Droid DNA and HTC 8X to its minions, and to back up the claim, one employee is flaunting his new RAZR for the world to see. Each device is said to flaunt Verizon’s corporate colors with a bold design, a limited edition badge and a unique number. Combine that with some of the best smartphones of the day and you’ll quickly find an excuse for all that drool on your keyboard. [Droid Life]

Dual-SIM Galaxy S III rears its head in China

Now here’s something you don’t see every day. As a follow-up to the dual-SIM variant of the Galaxy Note II, it appears that Samsung is looking to bless its other flagship handset with a split personality. The Galaxy S III i939D was recently spotted in China, but as a curious twist, it features one SIM slot for CDMA networks and another for GSM counterparts. The handset is thought to be ideal for subscribers of China Telecom and is said to debut next month. [Unwired View]

Special edition Samsung La Fleur smartphones rumored for January debut

If you’re looking for limited edition handsets that’ll actually be available for purchase, then you might want to circle January on your calendar. That’s when Samsung is said to debut its La Fleur editions of the Galaxy S III, Galaxy Ace 2, Galaxy Ace Duos and Galaxy S Duos. As the name suggests, each smartphone will receive a unique flower pattern, although specs for each handset will remain the same. [SamMobile]